A business cannot succeed without the right team of employees. They must have the qualities, strengths, and dedication a company needs to thrive.
Human resource professionals use their people skills to help employers find suitable employees, keep the company in legal compliance on various topics, while also communicating all company policies.
Being an HR manager is not an easy job, and it requires a professional to employ many skills and competencies on a daily basis. To gain a competitive edge as a HR professional, here are traits of those who enjoy and succeed in HR.
Top Qualities of a HR Manager
Great human resources professionals are made, not born. As you pursue the field academically, you’ll have the opportunity to identify, develop, strengthen and sharpen these qualities and skills.
A human resource degree, for example, is designed to shape your personal growth and help you identify the strengths, qualities and skills that you may not have realized you had. These include:
- Problem Solvers
- Diplomats
- People Person
- Natural Leadership
- Ethical Champions
- Skilled Presenters
- Multitaskers
- Conflict Resolvers
- Motivators
Problem Solvers
In an ideal environment, the world of a HR personnel would be black and white, with universally applicable answers to everything. However, as a HR manager, you will be presented with many conflicts within the organization, of which some will be difficult to sort out immediately.
Some conflicts will arise from within the same department, while other problems are interdepartmental. Therefore, you must stay organized and be decisive while solving such issues.
Diplomats
Having a diplomatic approach to HR means that you exercise patience in all your interactions. With such an approach, you’re more likely to succeed in the field than those without. It all sums up to your ability to deal with negotiations, opposing opinions, and challenging situations that call for disciplinary actions. You have a social responsibility to ensure fairness in all cases.
People Person
A HR manager must be approachable. This may seem like an evident skill to have, but it also calls for emotional intelligence. It goes beyond being able to handle issues diplomatically. It involves establishing open communication channels and understanding people and their differences. Being a people’s person is also about allowing and making it possible for people to approach you whenever they have a problem.
Trustworthiness is also an essential quality for an HR manager, especially when an employee is met with a situation where they feel like that have no one else to turn to. When such a thing happens, employees are likely to look for employment elsewhere, which you don’t want to happen as a HR manager.
Natural Leadership
As a HR manager, you’re the link between the management and the workforce. For this reason, you must be able to resolve complex situations and mediate problems between managers and employees. Leadership skills also require you to oversee the human resources functions with confidence and authority, differentiating right from wrong.
Beyond the HR functions, your employer also expects you to demonstrate strengths in overseeing other areas of operations. You must become a key partner in driving the organization’s overall strategy. To achieve this, you must think strategically and connect the HR function with in-depth knowledge of the organization’s core business.
Ethical Champions
In today’s competitive workplace environments, everyone wants to succeed, even if it means using shortcuts and disregarding rules. However, doing this will only set you on a downward spiral. So instead, strive to demonstrate your commitment to upholding an ethical workplace. You can achieve this by consistently adhering to the HR code of ethical behavior.
Using the code as your guide, take the lead in ensuring employees also uphold your organization’s values. As a HR, you are in the best position to lead the process for fair and equitable treatment of all people within the organization.
Skilled Presenters
A successful human resource manager possesses the skills to capture the audience’s attention. Whenever you have a presentation to make, you must be able to capture and maintain their engagement. A skilled and effective presenter is also lively and engaging and delivers the message positively and effectively.
Remember that you’ll be charged with the task of conducting training sessions for new employees. You will have a wide range of information to present to new hires, and may be asked to provide feedback to management. Therefore, your presentations must be well-written, have proper punctuation and grammar, all while holding the reader’s attention.
Multitaskers
On a typical day, a HR manager has several queries to handle. If it’s not one problem, then it’s another. Every employee problem is of utmost importance to the HR department, and you must respond promptly. This requires that you can multitask and provide solutions fast enough.
Conflict Resolvers
Dealing with conflict is an inevitable part of HR management. In the workplace setting, disagreements can sometimes work themselves out or may be magnified beyond what they are. As an HR manager, it’s up to you to use your critical thinking skills to manage the conflict amicably.
You need to gather all the relevant information about the issues and come up with possible solutions. While at it, remember to negotiate and allow room for compromise to ensure the smooth running of your office.
Motivators
For any workforce to be effective, it must stay motivated. Understand the functions of motivation and the various ways through which to motivate your teams. Remember, it’s not just about offering incentives but creating and maintaining standards for high-quality work. The aim is to foster employees’ belief in the objectives of the organization and their team.
Courage
During the course of your career, you may experience times of unrest or uncertainty. This is because of the challenges and conflicts that come with the position. However, instead of giving up, this is the time to demonstrate courage and stand firm amid opposition.
You will be faced with unpopular decisions, and you must stand firm in your belief in what’s best for the company.
Become an HR Manager at Baker College
Pursuing a Bachelor of Business Administration or Master of Business Administration in Human Resource Management can start you off on the right path to becoming a HR manager. With these courses, you’ll learn how to handle complex issues in the workplace and become the best you can be in your career.
